Yup, that time again. Yup, will continue being that time until the device makes actual appearance at either WWDC or another event. Next year will be the same. Anyway, take a look above and tell us: what do you think of the iPod Touch-like bottom-mounted headphone jack? Personally, I love it.

If rumours are anything to judge by and MacRumors seems to think they are, then the iPhone is losing its stealthy ninja powers hour by precious hour. The usually tight-lipped Apple simply cannot keep its new hardware secret from rumour-mongers, forums or hearsay. One of the latest suggests that the following hardware spec is what we are to expect in our shiny new iDevice. While anyone in their right minds (not us) would reckon that the below items are a shoo-in, TMA is not alone in pontificating Apple’s sometimes parsimonious nature.

It is no mean feat when Apple decide upon adding truly unique features to the iPhone which has been passed off by naysayers as underpowered, incapable and lacking a customary camera-phone feature. The recently rumoured magnometer and video recording features are being hyped by various sources including a Nokia blog and recent posts at TouchArcade suggest stunning new gaming and utility functions not possible with current hardware/software.

In a recent article, Macrumors.com reavealed that Apple’s own iPhone 2.2.1 firmware hosts a juicy morsel: the current iPhone -1,2 will be superceded by iPhone 2,1. While it was bound to happen at some point, this rather well-founded rumour spells some uncertainty especially in the mobile gaming arena.

TMA and other review sites will of course have to get our lovely iPhone 2,1 as soon as it comes out (certainly not soon) but barring massive changes, developers and users too could be forced to use emulation layers or old-style moslo type of software to run our favourites.

BoyGeniuscannot stop hyping up of objects that no one needs ;). Today their ninja’s report that the next iDevice may sport another buzzword: OLED screens. Indeed, not only does the rumour specify OLED for the iPhone but OLED for the yet unborn Netbook or tablet which has been stirring Apple zealots for many years.

According to Smarthouse, “Apple already have working prototype of a new Netbook which will be manufactured in Taiwan with the OLED screen supplied by LG”. This contrasts with earlier reports that Wintek would be manufacturing the screens for Apple. LG are purported to be working on a special OLED touchscreen that does away with fingermarks even after constant use.

Of course, release of a next-generation iPod and iPhone is not news or a rumour in itself. Apple tend to release redesigns fn their iPod and iPhone family once per year with updates to the capacity on a sometimes more frequent schedule. iDevice fans, this year may so far be great for rumours, but it also may out some great new products from Apple.

Splashtop has consistently been one of the most popular remote access and desktop control apps for iOS, and iPhone and iPod Touch users will benefit even more now with the release of Splashtop 2. Version 2.0 was first made available for the iPad ($6.99) several months ago, now with improvements in speed, reliability, security and support for Retina Display hitting the iPhone. So why would you want to use such an app? Well for starters, remote access apps like Splashtop allow you to control your desktop/laptop right from the comforts of your iDevices. So even if you’re away from your computer, you can still work on that Word document, or even watch videos that are located on your hard drive.

Camera+, one of the most popular and feature-laden third party camera apps for the iPhone, has just become the first app to support the iPhone 5’s dynamic low light mode. As explained on stage during the official unveiling, the iPhone 5’s camera provides up to 2 f-stops greater low light performance, meaning it can go all the way up to 3200 ISO when needed (vs 800 previously). As explained by Scott Meinzer of TapTapTap:

Apple has added the ability for the sensor in the iPhone 5 to take pictures at 4 times the sensitivity. If you’re a camera buff this means the ISO can go from a limit of 800 before, up to 3200 now!

We’re excited to announce that Camera+ 3.5.1 supports extended low-light shooting on the iPhone 5! To show you exactly what this means we’ve taken a comparison photo with Camera+ on the iPhone 4, iPhone 5, and iPhone 5 with new low-light mode. It adds some additional noise, as you can see in the 100% zoom, but it also enables you to take photos you wouldn’t have been able to take otherwise.

Looking for the latest app sales and deals for the iPhone, iPod Touch and iPad? Here’s our roundup today for the most recent freebies and price drops that are worth checking out. As always, they’re only good for a very limited time.

While Gameloft has been fairly quiet with new App Store offerings of late, the publisher has dropped the big one today with the release of the highly anticipated N.O.V.A. 3 – Near Orbit Vanguard Alliance. The first two N.O.V.A’s are widely considered to be among the best FPSes on iOS and the third instalment raises the stakes further by using Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 3. Among some of its technical highlights include “real-time shadow and lights, particle system and ragdoll physics”. Compared to the similarly styled Crysis games, N.O.V.A 3 takes place 4 months after the hit sequel and features 10 levels across the galaxy, multiple weapons and powers and 6 multiplayer modes that supports up to 12 players.

The game appears to be iDevice friendly as it supports even the iPhone 3GS, iPod Touch 3rd gen and iPad 1. N.O.V.A 3 (a 1.57 GB download) has already been released on the New Zealand App Store and should be making its way across other stores (including US) later in the day. Video trailers and more info after the gap.

To all the early adopters of the new iPad who are hoping to add Cydia to their retina-tablet ASAP, fret not as the Dev Team have posted some encouraging news regarding its eventual Jailbreak. This comes on the heels of the iPad 2 running iOS 5.1 being jailbroken by hacker @i0n1c, which he shared with the rest of the community via several pics he posted on his twitter account. Here’s the “good news” the Dev Team posted on their blog: